HISSANOLThe Making Of Himvirus210 (1998) CD SALE! - $12.00iTunesemusic
Canadian musical experimentalists Andy Kerr (ex-Nomeansno) and Scott Henderson (Shovlhed, Show Business Giants) make him. Their second full length.

"In the olden days the immense pressures of making the trip across the Atlantic locked in the hull of a ship wreaked psychological havoc on the traveler. The same, then, must hold true today. The tapes that Scott Henderson (Show Business Giants) and Andy Kerr (Nomeansno) have been mailing each other between Vancouver and Amsterdam have started crawling around with a life of their own. What started as an innocent experiment in lo-fi-by-mail has turned into something distinctly disturbing with The Making of Him. The surreal passages of the epic "Croggy to Nowhere" shuffles out of the grave of European history only to lie down and die in Zarathustra's cave with the opener, "Anti-fascist Song for Mom." Even the more upbeat numbers such as "The Making of Him" and "Rel by Prox" push the listener into a corner without dessert.The quirkiness that the Show Business Giants have become known for finds its way onto this album, and prevents it from being an absolute old-sweat nightmare. Songs like "Musik" and some of the later experimental ear candy provide ample relief without sacrificing too much of the balance."- Vox

"The making of Hissanol is the mailing of tapes across the Atlantic, between two participants who take turns adding their tracks to the whole. Like a conversation held with a long satellite delay, the conceptual gaps have an awkward beauty. The message was said, but not explained. Consequently, the aural combinations Hissanol comes up with are built from what is heard, not what is wanted, and the results are nothing short of cathartic. One Hissanol might riff like Black Sabbath at 78, while the other might be singing about "Loggins and Messina Reunion": "Your mama don't dance/and your daddy's Russ Tamblyn/dinner tonight is veal and ricotta." Mind you, "Loggins and Messina Reunion" is also notable for its surf-inspired chorus. The insanely chugging "Musik" features oblivious ramblings in the foreground, from the sound of it a British professor, while a rolling rhythm section hypnotizes with a sound reminiscent of the Dog-Faced Hermans.Hissanol is the sonic equivalent of a funhouse - suddenly, the floor isn't level anymore. It's tricky, but not so much you lose your balance.- Ink